Federal Budget presentation delayed till 10th

ISLAMABAD- The government has delayed the presentation of budget 2008-09 from previous schedule of June 7 to June 10 for both economic and political reasons, officials said on Tuesday. Even this minor delay in the budget announcement to be made in the National Assembly, which is already in session for the same purpose, would further squeeze the Parliamentarians' time to debate the annual policy, for by-elections following on June 26. According to sources, one of the main economic reasons to delay the budget was to include external resources anticipated in terms of extension in the Saudi Oil facility. The sources said the Prime Minister's Special Assistant Hina Rabbani Khar is already in Saudi Arabia on the same mission of securing extension in the facility that provides oil import on deferred payment basis. On the date of budget's previous schedule on June 7 or a day earlier Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani is also going to visit Saudi Arabia chiefly with request for at least a year's extension in the deferred oil payment facility, the sources said. In case Saudi Arabia extends the facility, it would brighten the chances of similar agreements with Kuwait, Turkey, and Iran, the sources added. The sources were of the view that the new date of budget on June 10 was also to serve political purpose of the government in diverting the public attention towards the budget from the announced pro-judiciary long march on the same day. The sources informed TheNation that the government plans to secure substantial support from the brotherly Islamic countries in the form of oil import on credit commonly known as deferred payment facility. That breather could be used for political mileage of presenting a pro-people budget that could eventually appease the ever-growing anti-government criticism for its slow pace on popular demand of judges' restoration.